Someday, the NFL Draft will arrive. Until then, the mock drafters will keep mocking.

Their latest batch contains two surprise names linked to the Chargers.

ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. sees UCLA edge rusher Anthony Barr going to San Diego via the 25th pick. That's a tumble for Barr, who has been a top-20 projection in several mainstream mocks.

Did I just refer to Barr as a mock has-been? Never mind.

It's worth remembering that UCLA coach Jim Mora and Chargers defensive coordinator John Pagano are friends who nearly became colleagues two offseasons ago. It can only help, regarding a prospect as polarizing as Barr, who watched film with Chargers personnel in March, that the Chargers are on good terms with his head coach. It was Mora who turned around Barr's career by moving him from running back to outside linebacker.

The other surprise name is USC receiver Marquise Lee, a match for San Diego in the view of NFL.com's Charles Davis. "Picture this smooth, big-play threat opposite WR Keenan Allen," Davis writes.

Now you've done it, Charles. The spirit of Air Coryell still lives in San Diego. Points, point, points. Among some Chargers fans, the team can never have enough playmakers, no matter how much oil is gushing from the team's defense. I see the logic. There's a case for taking Lee or LSU receiver Odell Bechkam at 25, and Philip Rivers' Fantasy League value isn't part of it. Building a good offense into a great one is a worthwhile endeavor. Of course, these discussions always hinge on the player evaluation. Choosing players with the same grade, I'd take a cornerback or edge rusher over a receiver.

A week doesn't go by without someone pairing the Chargers with nose tackle Louis Nix III, and this week it's Rob Rang of CBSSports.com who envisions the 6-foot-2, 331-pounder lining up in front of ex-Notre Dame teammate Manti Te'o.

"It isn't difficult to imagine him as the centerpiece of what could be the stoutest defensive line in the AFC West," Rang adds to a breakdown that includes candidates for San Diego in the second, third and fourth rounds.

Cornerback Kyle Fuller, like Nix, is another familiar name at 25; NFL.com's Daniel Jeremiah and Bucky Brooks place the Virgnia Tech man with San Diego.

"The Chargers need a long, rangy cover corner to match up with the big-bodied receivers that dominate the AFC West," Brooks writes.

I'm in partial agreement about the rationale. Length can be helpful. I'm not sure it's critical within the AFC West. The Broncos pose matchup problems, sure, with 6-3 No. 1 receiver Demaryius Thomas and 6-5 speedy tight end Julius Thomas. Then again, they just replaced 6-3 Eric Decker with 5-11 Emmanuel Sanders, and neither the Chiefs nor Raiders, as of now, have great length at receiver although Oakland added a strong, tough wideout in James Jones and may have plans for No. 4 receiver Andre Holmes, who is 6-4. At any rate, help at cornerback is needed. The Chargers' defense overall needs more physicality, and the physical Fuller, 6-foot and 190, is an interesting prospect.